


Forever

by Lobster



Series: A Year of Haymitch and Effie Drabbles [11]
Category: Hunger Games Series - All Media Types, Hunger Games Trilogy - Suzanne Collins
Genre: Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Canon-Typical Violence, F/M, Ficlet, Heavy Angst, POV Alternating, Pre-Canon, Suicide Attempt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-26
Updated: 2019-04-26
Packaged: 2020-02-04 20:20:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 742
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18611818
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lobster/pseuds/Lobster
Summary: Fifty-two weeks, fifty-two prompts, fifty-two drabbles; this work is part of a series of Haymitch/Effie drabbles inspired by one-word prompts. This week's prompt: forever.A story about when forever began for both Effie and Haymitch.





	Forever

**Author's Note:**

> Many, many thanks to Juxtaposie for her help with this fic, which ended up a bit longer than intended.

Forever started after the 63rd Games. Their tributes had both died early and they had, as usual, consoled each other in the living room of the penthouse. But Effie had gone back to her room and he had gone back to his and a pall still seemed to linger over them both. Feeling like he needed to see her again, Haymitch decided to bring Effie her favorite drink and wish her goodnight.

He found her, when she opened the door, bare of makeup and wigless, blonde hair falling to her shoulders in delicate curls. He was surprised; had expected her to slam the door in his face immediately, yelling at him to go away. After all, he had never seen her like this before. Instead, she sank into his arms, sobbing. He carefully placed the drink on her desk and held her awkwardly, but she didn’t seem to notice. Then she kissed him, with the same passion as earlier, and drew him to her bed. They made love in a way they had never performed the act before, gently, with great care and tenderness. Effie stopped crying partway through and surrendered into the moment, Haymitch doing his best to take her misery away.

Afterwards, she fell asleep in his arms, and he looked down on her bare face, hair haloed out on the pillow. He had never thought of her as beautiful before, never thought of her as anything, really, except Effie, but now he couldn’t take his eyes off her. He could feel something changing in their relationship, that some line had been crossed that could never be uncrossed. It scared him. He wouldn’t give voice to the emotion. The only thing he would give voice to was the softly whispered word, “ _Fuck_.”

\---

Forever started after the 68th Games. Their girl, Larkspur, had made it to third place before being axed in the face by the boy from District Five. Her body would not be decent to show at the burial. Effie and Haymitch were devastated. For the first time ever, they had gotten their hopes up. They had come so close to having a victor!

Haymitch stood up without saying a word and walked out of the Viewing Center, not even officially signing out. Effie looked after him, alarmed, but there were still duties to perform. Most importantly, she made the phone call to Larkspur’s parents, who already knew about their daughter's death. It had been mandatory viewing, so close to the end. Finishing up all the last details, she hurried back to the penthouse, glad to be rid of the Viewing Center for another year before she had to watch the final confrontation close up.

When she returned to the penthouse, however, she found the living room dark. The motion activated main lights had not been on for some time, apparently. At first she thought Haymitch was out, but then she came around the corner and found him passed out on the couch. Alarmed, she checked his breathing and couldn’t see the rise and fall of his chest. She tried to feel for his pulse and couldn’t find it. She gave a piercing scream - the Avoxes came running and before she knew it there was a security detail at the door. She had never been more grateful to have her suspicions that there were bugs planted in the penthouse confirmed.

Haymitch was hauled off to the victor hospital which was situated beneath the Training Center - he was still alive. Effie had missed his pulse, which was weak and unsteady. The doctors in the hospital pumped his stomach, stabilized his condition and diagnosed him as having drank too much. “Inevitable,” they said, “He was bound to do it eventually. Just a good thing it happened here and not back in the district.” Effie collapsed into a chair at the end of his hospital bed and waited for him to wake up.

As she stared at his resting form, looking yellowed and weak in the narrow bed, it occurred to her that she would be lost without him in her life. He was her only constant. All her other friends (Was she friends with Haymitch? She thought so.) came and went periodically. He grounded her. Seeing Haymitch was the one thing she looked forward to every year, pain in the ass that he was. She… cared about him, truly. And she needed him. Always.  
  
“ _Fuck_ ,” Effie whispered to a sleeping Haymitch.


End file.
